


Watercolored Lilies

by hobbit_hedgehog



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Established Relationship, Fluff, Haikyuu Secret Santa 2017, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 02:50:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13137534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hobbit_hedgehog/pseuds/hobbit_hedgehog
Summary: Tooru's flowers were life-like in ways that earned write-ups in magazines and awards.  He was one of the best in the industry, but there was one little snag.  He was in a creative rut.  He needed to expand his repertoire, but the question remained—how was he going to do that?  He finds the answer in watercolor tattoos.For thunderingskies for the Haikyuu Secret Santa 2017 gift exchange.





	Watercolored Lilies

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thunderingskies](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thunderingskies/gifts).



> Hey Team! Happy Holidays! This was written for ao3 user thunderingskies (@josai on tumblr) as part of the Haikyuu Secret Santa 2017 Gift Exchange. I hope you enjoy the fic, and have a Merry Christmas!

It happened every year.  Spring would roll around, and the shop would be flooded with people setting up appointments to have their favorite flower tattooed somewhere on their bodies.  Being a tattoo artist that specialized in realism tattoos, this was never a problem for Tooru.  His flowers were stunning, his colors and shading were so immaculate that it was as if he had plucked each bloom from its stem and pressed it to the customer's skin.  Tooru's flowers were life-like in ways that earned write-ups in magazines and awards.  He was one of the best in the industry, but there was one little snag.  He was in a creative rut.  There was no shortage of customers, sure, but he found himself growing more and more frustrated with his pieces **.**   He was reusing designs, he had used this color combination before, this picture was taken off of Pinterest.  His customers left happy, but Tooru was left feeling completely dissatisfied.  He needed change.  He needed to expand his repertoire, but the question remained—how was he going to do that?

This question had been bothering Tooru for several weeks by the time he finally got his answer.  One March evening, Tooru had been flipping through a local tattoo magazine—purposefully avoiding the article about a former apprentice of his that labeled the boy as the year's Artist to Watch—when he came across an article about watercolor tattoos.  Tooru stared at the title before diving headfirst into the article.  It was a basic overview article, one that didn't really delve too much into the exact art of watercolor tattoos, but provided Tooru with enough high definition photos to get his creative juices flowing.  Unlike the tattoos Tooru usually did that had more pronounced outlines and distinct color blends, the watercolors had subtle gradients.  The gradual blending of colors, and the lack of an outline gave the tattoos the desired watercolor effect.  There were some tattoos that contained some line work, but it never distracted from the explosion of colors that drew Tooru in.  No, those particular tattoos were astonishing marriages of techniques, a blend that Tooru greatly appreciated.  This was what he had been looking for.

In usual Tooru fashion, he immediately devoted most of his free time—the portion that wasn't spent with his boyfriend, Hajime—to researching watercolor tattoo techniques.  What sort of needles were used?   How did other artists get that exact type of gradient?  What could he as the artist do to keep the tattoo's colors from fading too quickly?  Within days, his bookmarks were filled with page upon page of watercolor references and tips. 

The endeavor lead to more late nights than Hajime would have liked, but Tooru was determined.  Besides, Tooru had reasoned, his best ideas came to him between the hours of one and four in the morning.  That night was one such night.  As the hours passed, and the more he researched, Tooru began to design in his head.  He could see how the richest purple could fade into the softest pink, how yellow and blue petals could blend into the green of a stem.  Idea after idea filled Tooru's brain, his fingers itched for his sketchbook.  No, not just for his sketchbook; Tooru found himself wanting to try his hand at watercolor painting.  But painting from images found on the internet just wasn't Tooru's style, he needed the real thing.

Tooru reached for his phone and sent a quick text to Hajime.

To Iwa-chan: Hey, you still work in a plant shop right?

The answer came almost instantaneously.

From Iwa-chan: Are you just now taking an interest in what I do for a living shittykawa???  
From Iwa-chan: We've been together for 5 years  
From Iwa-chan: Friends for longer than that

Tooru smiled at his phone; if Hajime was using nicknames, he wasn't actually mad. 

To Iwa-chan: Of course I'm interested in your work <3  
To Iwa-chan: I was just double checking  
To Iwa-chan: Cut me some slack, it's 2am  
From Iwa-chan: Why are awake at 2am???  
From Iwa-chan: You need sleep!  
To Iwa-chan: I could ask you the same thing  
To Iwa-chan: Unlike you, I don't need to be awake at 6am  
From Iwa-chan: Yes I do work at a flower shop  
From Iwa-chan: We also sell saplings

Tooru smirked at the sudden change in topic.

To Iwa-chan: Perfect, I'm going to drop by tomorrow morning and sketch for a bit  
From Iwa-chan: As long as you don't drive customers off it's fine  
To Iwa-chan: Thank you <3 <3 <3 <3  
To Iwa-chan: I'll bring you breakfast tomorrow  
From Iwa-chan: <3

***

The following morning, Tooru pushed open the door to Hajime's flower shop with a pastry bag and two cups of tea in hand.  He had painting supplies and a brand new sketchbook in the bag slung over his shoulder, and a twinkle of excitement in his eyes.  Hajime stood behind the counter, a watering can in one hand and an orchid on the counter in front of him.  He set down the watering can and smiled at Tooru as he walked in.

"Morning, Tooru."

"Good morning, Iwa-chan," Tooru called as he walked up to the counter.  He presented Hajime with the pastry bag and one of the cups of tea.  "Breakfast, as promised."

Hajime took the cup and bag from Tooru, setting them down before circling the counter to give Tooru a hug and a kiss.

"Thank you, I really appreciate it," Hajime said.  He moved back around to the other side of the counter, grabbing the cup of tea as he went.  He took a sip and let out an appreciative hum.

"I know why I was up that late, but why were you awake that late?" Tooru asked.

Hajime looked a little embarrassed as he said, "I was watching something and lost track of time."

Tooru flashed Hajime a teasing grin.  "Let me guess, you were binge watching Godzilla movies?"

"Don't you have some sketching to do?" Hajime grumbled with no real anger in his voice.

"Painting, actually," Tooru said.  He pulled a watercolor set from his bag and showed it to Hajime.  "I'm going to start doing watercolor tattoos, so I wanted to try to painting over sketches of flowers to see what would look like."

"Why not just look at pictures online?" Hajime asked.

Tooru made a face.  "I can only learn so much by staring at pictures on a screen, Iwa-chan."

"Uh huh.  Well, the shop's at your disposal," Hajime said with a sweeping gesture.

Tooru did a few quick laps around the shop, studying the plants as he went.  He eventually settled down on the floor in front of the display of saplings.  He pulled the sketchbook and a pencil from his bag and got to work.  Within minutes, he had the basic outline of a maple sapling on the page.

"So, what made you want to do watercolor tattoos?" Hajime asked from somewhere near the zinnias.

Tooru looked up from the sapling, turning to look at Hajime.  "You know, sometimes you just need to branch out," he said, gesturing at the small tree.

Hajime let out a snort of amusement.  "That was bad, Crappykawa."

"I hit a creative wall, but I rose above it."

"Please stop."

"The others at the shop thought lilac-ed the ability to do it, but I'll prove them wrong."

"Tooru, I swear to god."

"I'm planting the seeds of knowledge now so that I may harvest it later."

"Oh come on!"

"You're putting me in an orchid situation here, Iwa-chan.  You're the one who asked."

Tooru snickered as Hajime buried his face in his hands and groaned, "You're the worst, Tooru."

"You love me and my puns," Tooru replied.

"Yeah, I do," Hajime said with a sigh and a fond smile.  "I gotta get back to work.  I'll leaf you to your drawings."

"And you say my puns are bad," Tooru muttered.

Hajime let out a snicker of his own before vanishing into the back of the shop.  Tooru finished his sketch of the sapling, then did another lap around the store looking for something to draw.  He did this several times—walking around until inspiration hit, stopping to sketch the flower before getting up again.  After his fifth sketch, he made his way towards a small indoor koi pond near the front of the shop.  He settled next to it and sketched one of the pale yellow water lilies that had been planted near the edge.  Some of the bottom petals held drops of water, their almond-like shapes weighed down but not fully submerged.  Tooru found himself reaching out to touch one of the petals, the feel smooth under his fingertip.

Tooru didn't get up after his sketch.  He found himself drawing numerous water lilies, each picture varying in size and angle.  Once the page was full, Tooru returned his pencil to his bag.  He pulled out his painting supplies, and set them on the edge of the pond.  He eyed the palette of watercolors with some trepidation; he had never really painted much before and wasn't entirely sure how well this would go.

"Well, here goes nothing."

***

Trying to paint his sketches hadn't been a mistake, per se, but Tooru was definitely unhappy with his work.  He had painted each flower, but none of the paintings quite matched the beauty of the real thing.  The colors had bled together more than once, some colors were too light, the others too dark, the layers were uneven.  Overall, it looked very beginner; he'd have to start over.  Tooru set down his brushes, fished his pencil out of his bag, and began a new sketch.

"I see you found the lilies," Hajime said from behind Tooru.  "How'd the painting go?"

"Not great," Tooru admitted, not looking up from his sketchbook.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Hajime said as he sat next to Tooru.  "Can I see?"

"Here you go, Iwa-chan," Tooru said, signing the page before ripping it out of his sketchbook.  "A series of Oikawa Tooru originals."

Hajime studied the mess of colors on the page.  Tooru could have sworn he saw some of the paint bleeding through the paper.

"This is what you call a bad first attempt?" Hajime asked.  "They don't look that bad to me.  A little messy, but not terrible."

"You should get the page framed, it'll last longer," Tooru joked as he started in on a new sketch, his tone only a little bitter.  "Better yet, get one of those tattooed.  That way they'd last forever."

Hajime looked up from the paper, a frown on his face.  "What have I said about being self-depreciating around the plants?"

"They don't appreciate the negativity," Tooru said.

"That's right, they don't.  And neither do I."

Tooru set his pencil down and ran a hand through his hair.  "I know that anything I paint isn't going to look stellar the first time around, but it's still a little frustrating."

"I know it is," Hajime said.  "Just keep at it, you'll get it eventually.  Besides, this is just extra, isn't it?  You don't really need to actually make watercolor paintings to be able to tattoo in that style."

"I don't, but I want my clients to want my paintings as tattoos," Tooru said.

"So, keep practicing.  Research how to paint using watercolors and go from there."

Tooru smiled at Hajime, then leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his forehead, "For someone who knows nothing about art, you give the best advice, Iwa-chan."

Hajime ruffled Tooru's hair, earning an indignant squawk from Tooru.  "Please, that's advice that anyone would give.  Just keep practicing, and you'll get there.  I know you will."

With that, Hajime stood and went back to work.  Tooru noted that he took the page of lily paintings with him.  With a renewed sense of determination, Tooru picked his pencil up and got back to work.  He had some paintings to practice.

***

Weekly visits to Hajime's shop led to a stockpile of watercolor paintings.   Armed with a plethora of designs, Tooru began practice watercolor tattooing techniques in the shop.  Reminiscent of his days as an apprentice, he started by practicing on melons.  It was a slow-going, but necessary process, especially if he wanted to get better.  Once he got the hang of the technique, he moved onto doing watercolor touch ups.  It was harder to tattoo on a living being, as they were more likely to move during the tattooing process, but Tooru lived for the challenge.  He had been tattooing for years, he knew his way around a gun.  But it was nice to be able to start from square one on something, and he was a fast learner.  After months of practicing, he was finally getting the hang of watercolor tattoos.  He had something he could add to his portfolio.

"Those watercolor designs look good, Oikawa," Tooru's fellow artist, Issei, told him during lunch one day. 

The two were sitting in the shop's lounge.  Tooru had been pouring over his sketchbook for the better part of their break while Issei had looked over his shoulder.

"Thank you, Mattsun," Tooru said.  "I think I'm finally at the point where Irihata will start letting me do full sessions with clients with these."

"That's definitely going to bring in business," Issei commented.  " Oikawa Tooru watercolor tattoos will be this year's trend.  Calling it now."

"Here's hoping."

The two lapsed back into silence as Oikawa picked up a pencil and started a new sketch.

"Do you think Iwaizumi would ever want to get one of your designs as a tattoo?" Issei asked.  "I'm surprised that he hasn't gotten one already."

"He keeps mentioning that he'd like to get one eventually," Tooru replied.  "But he doesn't know what he wants, and I don't want to tattoo something on him that he'd hate."

"Yeah, that'd probably be a relationship breaker," Issei agreed.  "Can't ruin the one good thing you have going for you."

Tooru balled up a napkin and threw it at Issei.  "Rude, Mattsun!"

"I'm joking, Oikawa," Issei laughed.  "I'm sure that Iwaizumi'd love anything you designed for him."

"He better," Tooru said.  "My work is amazing.  Every single one is a true modern masterpiece."

"Note to self," Issei said in a mock whisper, "when Iwaizumi finally schedules his appointment, schedule it with Kyoutani."

Tooru almost snapped his pencil in half.  "What?!  No, I'm going to be Iwa-chan's first tattoo experience!"

"You can't stop me, Oikawa.  You never work the reception desk."

"Why would you do this to me, Mattsun?" Tooru whined as he slumped across the table.

Issei patted Tooru's head.  "Someone's gotta knock your ego down a few pegs."

"Rude!"

***

Three months later, Tooru was cleaning his workspace when he heard the bell above the shop door chime.  He could hear the sounds of faint conversation near the front—either a client here for a consultation or someone here for their appointment.  Tooru had a session scheduled soon, so whoever it was they were probably there for him.

"Oikawa-san?" Yahaba called from the reception desk.  "Your first appointment is here."

Tooru made his way to the front of the shop, putting on his best customer service smile as he walked.  His smile faltered as he recognized the man standing at the desk talking to Matsukawa.

"Iwa-chan?" Tooru asked.  "What are you doing here?"

Hajime turned from Matsukawa to wave at Tooru.  He had a torn piece of paper in his hand.

"I'm your first appointment," Hajime said.   "Surprise."

Tooru was dumbstruck; this was a complete surprise to him.  Hajime had begun to fidget with the paper in his hand, clearly uncomfortable with Tooru's staring.  Tooru shook his head to clear it.  "Are you here for a consultation?"

"Nope, I'm pretty set on the design," Hajime said.  He held the paper out for Tooru to take.  "It's an Oikawa Tooru original."

Tooru unfolded the paper and studied it.  There on the page were his water lily designs; Hajime had kept them after all.  Tooru could feel the tears welling up in his eyes.  He cleared his throat and looked back up at Hajime.

"You know I can do better than this, right?"

Hajime grinned, "I kind of figured.  These are just for reference."

Tooru led Hajime back to his workspace where they spent a few minutes finalizing colors, designs and location.  Hajime settled on a watercolor tattoo of a trio of water lilies—each in a different shade of blue—floating on water on Hajime's right bicep.   Tooru set up his equipment, showing Hajime the sterilization process before disinfecting Hajime's bicep.  As he stenciled the design onto Hajime's arm, Tooru could feel his stomach twisting itself into knots.  This was Hajime's first tattoo, and he wanted a watercolor tattoo.  Tooru's designs were gorgeous, but they would look noticeably different on skin, and he had only been using this technique for a few months.  What if Hajime hated it?  What if-

"Hey," Hajime's voice cut through the cacophony of Tooru's thoughts.  "Whatever you're stressing about, don't.  I'm going to love it, okay?"

"You promise?" Tooru asked.

"Of course," Hajime replied.  "I know how good you are, I've seen your work.  You're a wizard with that thing."

Tooru looked down at his tattoo gun and grinned.  "Well, if Iwa-chan says so, it must be true."

"It is true.  Now, let's get this over with.  That needle's making me nervous."

***

It was one of the best pieces Tooru had ever done, in Tooru's humble opinion.  It had taken several hours, but by the time he was done, Tooru was absolutely thrilled with how the tattoo had turned out.  Three water lilies—one light cobalt, one violet-blue, one azure—were floating down a dark, slate blue stream.  There was minimal line work, Tooru had only done enough for the tattoo to have a base.  It was as if Tooru had picked up a brush and painted directly onto Hajime's skin.  He loved it.

Hajime, it seemed, loved it too; he was staring at his new tattoo in a nearby mirror and hadn't taken his eyes off of his reflection.

"You did well for your first time," Tooru said.  "We only had to stop three times, and you didn't cry once."

"Bite me, Crappykawa," Hajime replied without malice.  He studied the tattoo for a few more minutes before turning and pulling Tooru into a near bone-crushing hug.

"Thank you, Tooru," Hajime said.  "It really does look good.  You did a great job."

Tooru returned the hug with as much force as he could muster without hurting Hajime's arm.  He may have been nervous about the whole thing, but now that it was done, Tooru felt nothing but pride in his work.  Hajime had wanted an Oikawa Tooru original, and now he'd have one for the rest of his life.

"I love you, Hajime."

"I love you too, Tooru."

"So, when can I do your next tattoo?"

**Author's Note:**

> Things I Googled for this fic:  
> -How tattoo artists practice  
> -Watercolor tattoo process  
> -Birth flowers  
> -Types of flowers found in Japan  
> -Types of lilies found in Japan  
> -Why is Google failing me  
> -Are grapefruits found in Japan  
> -Types of melons found in Japan  
> -Flower Puns  
> -Blue color palettes  
> -Hex codes


End file.
